The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it is described in this background section, as well as aspects of the description that may not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure.
Today, many portable devices support software applications that display interactive digital maps. Some of these software applications are developed primarily for providing interactive digital maps. Other software applications, such as web browsers, may display interactive digital maps along with other content. These software applications collectively can be referred to as “mapping applications” for convenience. Mapping applications generally provide multiple functions for interacting with the digital map, such as changing the zoom level, repositioning the viewport, etc. Moreover, mapping applications often provide additional information and services related to digital maps.
One example of such services is providing directions for travelling between a source and a destination by car, public transit, bicycle, or on foot. A mapping application running on a client device can transmit a request specifying the source, the destination, and the mode of transport to a navigation server. The navigation server in response can provide the directions as a sequence of steps, such as “turn right onto 9th Street” or “take the Purple Line to the Linden stop.” Because the mapping application contacts one or several servers via a communication network to retrieve directions, the user typically observes a delay when viewing directions or information related to directions.